KCP&L Announces Innovative Partnership with Google

Customers and Kansas City region to benefit from ultra high-speed
Internet service

May 17, 2011 11:46 AM Eastern Daylight Time

KANSAS CITY, Mo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Great Plains Energy (NYSE:GXP) and Kansas City Power & Light (KCP&L)
announced today an agreement with Google and the City of Kansas City,
Mo., to bring Google’s ultra high-speed fiber optic Internet service to
residents and businesses in Kansas City, Mo. KCP&L is the first
investor-owned utility in the world to partner with Google on its Google
Fiber initiative. By providing access to its electrical infrastructure,
KCP&L will allow Google to offer Internet service at speeds up to 100
times faster than what most people have today.

“Today is an exciting day for our company, our customers and the Kansas
City region,” said Mike Chesser, chairman and CEO of Great Plains Energy
and KCP&L. “KCP&L’s electrical infrastructure, one of the most reliable
systems in the United States, combined with Google’s state-of-the-art
fiber optic technology, will deliver Internet service at speeds unknown
anywhere else. We can only begin to imagine the benefits and
possibilities.”

"Just as the move from dial-up to broadband led to new and unpredictable
innovations, we believe ultra high-speed bandwidth will push the web to
even greater heights – and we couldn’t imagine a better place to start
than the Kansas City region," said Milo Medin, Google's Vice President
for Access Services. "We're thrilled to be working with KCP&L to bring
the most advanced Internet service in the country to Kansas Citians."

As part of the agreement, KCP&L will provide Google access to its poles,
infrastructure and existing fiber network to deliver its ultra
high-speed service to customers in Kansas City, Mo. Rather than having
to build its own delivery system, this innovative agreement will allow
Google and KCP&L to work together to deploy service over KCP&L’s
existing infrastructure, significantly reducing costs as well as time
for engineering, permitting and construction.

“At KCP&L we are committed to improving life in the communities we serve
and this agreement helps us continue to do that,” said Chesser. “We have
a proud history of innovation and ‘firsts’ in our industry, from our
landmark carbon offset agreement with the Sierra Club, to our urban
smart grid demonstration project around the Green Impact Zone, to the
introduction of all-electric vehicles to our fleet. Today’s announcement
continues this legacy and our commitment to collaborative partnership.”

Over the last year, more than 1,100 cities across the United States
competed to host Google’s next generation Internet service. In March of
this year, Google announced Kansas City, Kan., as the first community to
receive ultra high-speed fiber. Since the announcement, KCP&L, the City
of Kansas City, Mo., and other community groups have continued to work
with Google to expand the deployment in the Kansas City region.

“Google took notice of our region’s commitment to technology, innovation
and entrepreneurship. We applaud Google for recognizing what is truly
special about the Kansas City region and our customers,” Chesser
continued. “Imagine the economic development potential as our region
becomes the first in the world to broadly deliver ultra high-speed
Internet connectivity. Instead of only the largest companies or most
affluent suburbs, this agreement will make superfast Internet
connections available to everyone in Kansas City. Now schools,
businesses, neighborhoods and individual residents will benefit from the
ultra-fast broadband technology. We are excited to help unlock those
benefits and opportunities.”

Google’s ultra high-speed broadband service will allow customers access
to the Internet at sustained speeds of one gigabit per second. Google
plans to begin offering this service to residents of Kansas City in
early 2012.

Additional information about KCP&L’s involvement with Google Fiber in
Kansas City, Mo., is available at www.kcpl.com.

About KCP&L:

Headquartered in Kansas City, Mo., Great Plains Energy Incorporated
(NYSE:GXP) is the holding company of Kansas City Power & Light Company
and KCP&L Greater Missouri Operations Company, two of the leading
regulated providers of electricity in the Midwest. Kansas City Power &
Light and KCP&L Greater Missouri Operations use KCP&L as a brand name.
More information about the companies is available on the Internet at www.greatplainsenergy.com
or www.kcpl.com.